Autos For Sale By Owner
November 12th, 2011Top Tips when buying Used Autos For Sale By Owner
How much can you afford to spend?
- Before you think about which of the autos for sale by owner to buy, you will want to calculate how much money you have available.
- Decide on the value of the car you have at the moment and choose whether you will sell it privately in the Autos For Sale By Owner section of your local paper or on the internet or to one of the Cars For Cash websites that will give you an instant quote.
- Do you need to take out an auto loan to raise the funds to buy your new auto.
- Consider all the running costs of your new car, especially if it is a gas guzzler or high powered, as this will effect your fuel and auto insurance costs.
Which car to choose?
- There has never been a greater choice of autos for sale by owner available at the present time.
- Consider carefully the type of car that you need on a practical level.
- Decide basic things like the number of seats you require – a 2 seater sports car to a 7 seater minivan
- How much luggage room do you require, shopping, transporting kids camping gear or bikes, your Great Dane dog.
- Which manufacturer do you prefer, Ford or Honda etc.
- Which cars are the most reliable or have the lowest servicing charges.
What questions to ask the seller?
- With autos for sale by owner, your first contact is usually with the owner and this can reveal a lot of valuable information about the car, so it’s important you ask the right questions.
- Get as much information on the history of the car as possible, did they own it from new, or who owned it before them.
- Ask lots of questions about the condition of the car and any issues that they have had with it during their ownership.
- If all sounds good then arrange to see the car at the home of the owner, don’t be tempted to meet them in a car park or gas station.
Viewing the car for sale
- If you have access to a mechanic, then arrange for the car to be seen at the garage.
- Make sure that you inspect the car in daylight as this will show up any bodywork or paint problems, and make it so much easier to see what you are buying.
- Get a history and credit check done on the car to see if there is any outstanding finance, check to see if the car has previously been written off by an insurance company etc.
- Ensure that all the title documents are in order and all the numbers match up – VIN numbers etc. The Vehicle Identification Number should be on a plate at the bottom of the screen, under the bonnet and stamped into the bodywork beside the driver seat, under the carpet.
- Check to make sure that all the electrics and gadgets work in the car as these can be expensive to put right.
- Walk around the car and view it from many angles, look down the side to make sure that the panels are straight and the gaps around the doors, bonnet and boot lid or tailgate are all even.
Take the car for a test drive
- Your test drive is your best opportunity to check out every part of the car, from how it feels to drive, to testing that all its equipment is working properly.
- 15 minutes is a minimum time that you should spend driving the car and try to vary the road type to shake out any suspension problems for example.
- Don’y forget that you will need to have insurance to drive the car, even for just a test drive, speak to your insurance company for temporary cover.
- If possible, start the car when the engine is cold, this will allow you to check for any funny noises or black smoke.
How to negotiate for a great price on your new car
- Most owners will expect you to make them an offer on their car at a lower price than advertised so don’t disappoint them by offering the full asking price.
- Have a figure in your head of how much you think the car is worth and the budget that you have to spend.
- Make a low but fair bid to start with and see how the owner reacts, it is up to him or her on how much they are prepared to take and how eager they are to make the sale.
- Even a full tank of fuel can be used as a bargaining point in the discussion.
- Stay as calm and relaxed as you can and be reasonable, the best deals are when both the seller and the buyer are happy.
At the end of the day, if the sale is not agreed then there are plenty of other used autos for sale by owner on the market to choose from.

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